🍎 Washington's fruit-bowl superpower

The Cascade Mountains split Washington in two. Ocean storms drop their rain on the west side; the east side sits in the rain shadow — dry, sunny, and perfect for fruit that hates rot and rain-split.

Basis: The Cascade rain shadow is textbook U.S. geography.

Dry air alone isn't enough — the water comes from rivers and irrigation: snowmelt from the mountains is carried into the orchards of the Columbia Basin, so farmers add exactly as much water as the trees need.

Basis: Columbia Basin irrigation is well documented (and appears in this site's apple quiz background).

Cold winters are actually a feature: apple, cherry and pear trees need winter chill to set fruit properly the next year.

Basis: Fruit-tree chill requirement — standard horticulture.